Virus Hoaxes

From time to time email warnings regarding viruses make the rounds. A very small percentage of the warnings are for real viruses. However, the majority of the warnings are virus hoaxes.

Please do not forward any of these warnings or other chain emails on. If you - or your company - use regularly updated antivirus software and take sensible precautions, you are relatively safe from viruses.

Forwarding virus hoaxes reflects negatively, both on the person forwarding the hoax and any organisation that they might be associated with. In particular, if you are an IT Professional or somebody whom others look to as a computer authority, forwarding such messages without checking their validity first detracts from your credibility and frankly, can make you look like a bit of a dork.

Here is some information on virus hoaxes and the avoidance of actual viruses. The following message is a possible response you could send, to people who have sent hoax messages to you:

A FRIENDLY MESSAGE ABOUT THE WARNING YOU JUST SENT The warning you have forwarded is a hoax. The danger is imaginary and the problem is nonexistent. Security experts request that no-one circulates unverified warnings of vague, alarming dangers.

Key indicators that a message is a hoax

Use of exclamation marks [no official warning uses them]

Use of lots of UPPERCASE text [typical of young players]

Misspellings and bad grammar

No date of origination or expiration

References to official-sounding sources [i.e., Microsoft, CIAC, CERT] but no web link to check these details

No valid digital signature from a known security organisation

Requests imploring you to circulate widely [no such request is made in official documents]

Guidelines for avoiding viruses & Trojan Horse programs

Always run a good [i.e. ICSA-certified] antivirus program in the background on your system